November 2006: Hospitalized in a London facility, Alexander Litvinenko asks to be heard by the police. Recently naturalized British, this former Russian FSB (ex-KGB) agent publicly accuses Vladimir Putin of having poisoned him. In fact, he will die about twenty days later… The case had shaken the international scene and a miniseries in four chapters tries to explain. ” It’s not a political thriller, it’s a detective story“, Marina Litvinenko summarized during a virtual press conference for the French media.
Involved in the production, the widow of Alexander Litvinenko perfectly explains the angle adopted by the screenwriter George Kay (Lupin): after the investigation by the men of Scotland Yard to determine the nature of the poison as well as its method administration, and hence the culprits. Therefore, we are embarked on a reality thrillerwhich respects all the conventions of the genre (clues, suspects and interrogations), except that the sponsor is a head of state. A thorough work that will lead the European Court of Human Rights to confirm Russia’s responsibility in this case in September 2021.
David Tennant as the Russian spy
As such, the surprising third episode follows a trio of British investigators who travel to Moscow to interrogate suspects despite the manipulations of local authorities. Among the cops who plunge headlong into this case are two stalwarts of the British small screen: Neil Maskell (of the cult series Utopia ) and Mark Bonnar (the crooked lawyer ofLittle murder between brothers ). In this authentic treasure hunt, however, it is David Tennant’s shadow that hovers: the star of Doctor Who and of Large church is remarkable in the role of the murdered spy:He is a very well known actor in the UK and thanks to him a new generation of viewers will hear my husband’s story perhaps for the first time.“waits Marina Litvinenko.
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The miniseries also paints an intense portrait of the latter, embodied on screen by the Russian-American actress Margarita Levieva, seen especially in the action and spy series.At the service of the past(Netflix). “We met several times, to walk around London, to have lunch together, to go see a ballet. I didn’t give him any advice, but then I realized that he had studied my way of talking and walking.» After the workA very expensive poison(taken from the book of the same name and created in London in 2019), the memory of Alexander Litvinenko continues to occupy the media space: a necessity at a time when Vladimir Putin is more than ever at the center of the news.
By George Kay, with David Tennant, Margarita Levieva and Mark Bonnar. 4 episodes of 50 minutes. Thursday, 9.10 p.m.
Source : Le JDD
